


The Binding Of Isaac One-Shots

by ProblematicPikachu



Category: The Binding of Isaac (Video Game)
Genre: Again this will constantly update depending on what I add to the stories, All of that, All stories will have a warning at the top though, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, And I do mean it so please don't read this if you don't know what this game is about, But there are also chapters focused on only one character or platonic stuff, Canon-Typical Violence, Dead Dove: Do Not Eat, Depends on what will be requested, Fluff and Humor, How Do I Tag, I mean suicide and such things are so heavily involved in the game, M/M, Not Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Self-Harm, Self-Hatred, Shipping, because I'm way too soft inside, lots of it I promise, tboi, will be there too though lots of it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-26
Updated: 2021-02-19
Packaged: 2021-03-03 22:15:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 14,581
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24932872
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ProblematicPikachu/pseuds/ProblematicPikachu
Summary: Where I put some little stories that I wanted to write out. Most of them will play in my personal universe and develop those characters, as well having fun with some “What-if” scenarios and some shipping!I TAKE REQUESTS!These request WILL include shipping and other AUs, just tell me what you want! Your AU? GREAT! Your OCs? NIFTY! The more specific you are, the better and if you want a character completely differently interpreted, then I’m fully down for it. The more specific you are, the more fun it will be!Heed the warning, these stories will contain everything from fucked up shit, to tooth-rotting fluff. Also, every chapter will have their specific warnings, if they only apply for that specific chapter. Some things I will write will probably be triggering content to varying degrees, so I WILL make sure to put it up there for every chapter. The warnings in the tags are general warnings that apply to every chapter and won’t be repeated.You can read the first chapter for some more information and feel free to ask about anything in the comments.REQUESTS ARE OPEN UNTIL I SAY THEY’RE CLOSED. EVEN IF I HAVEN’T UPDATED IN A WHILE. I AM STILL HERE, JUST SLEEPING.I hope you will have fun!
Relationships: Cain/Judas (Binding of Isaac), Conquest/War (Binding of Isaac), Eden/Lazarus (Binding of Isaac), Isaac/Greed (Binding of Isaac)
Comments: 74
Kudos: 18





	1. Why hello there! (Skip this if you want)

Why, hello there!  
  
So, I finally cracked and bowed and I will make a tboi story book. Mainly because I want to have a place to cleanly store my stories.  
Things I probably need to mention:  
  
I'm from Germany, get ready for weird grammar. Still, I'm trying my best, if you find a bothering mistake, point it out, I'll fix it.

This is just a way of saying thank you, for such a fun fandom, as well as me trying to do my own thing on the side. I might take my time with your request. Feel free to message me as often as you want to ask how the progress is, but if you appear impatient I might be tempted to rush more... which would take away from the "quality" of your one-shot. Sorry for that :/

Comment as much as you want! Criticize or compliment, in both cases an explanation would be even better! If you don't feel like judging, a simple "was nice, have a good day" or "not really my cup of tea, but it was okay" is enough to make me smile and feel as if writing actually reaches people. Don't fear to nitpick either! I know how annoying little habits in writing can become and I'd hate for anyone to stop reading, just because of a small flaw that I should be able to fix!

Due to my inexperience with this website, I'll just mention this: I reread and fix my stories a LOT. I don't know if you get notified about that, but if an already published chapter gets updated, it just means I fixed some spelling error or similar. :3  
  
There WILL be problematic content and I’m not sure what I will and won’t write. I have my squicks that I won’t touch. You’re free to request them, but I might say “Hey, thanks for the request, but I can’t write that kind of stuff, please ask someone else”.  
  
(For example, there might be something coming up that is from Isaac’s perspective, glorifying his own suicide, making it out to be the best thing ever.  
I don’t condone it, suicide is NEVER the answer and if you have such thoughts, please reach out to someone. (This actually includes me, if you have no one you want to reach out to in your life right now. I might not be able to do much, but I will do what I can, because you’re a valuable human being and I care.)  
Please never think my writing is condoning or encouraging anything. If there are any doubts, talk to me personally. However, I enjoy writing these things anyways. It helps me and it makes for interesting stories.)  
  
I ship a lot of stuff and I’m a sucker for fluff! Platonic, romantic or just complete crack, all of the stuff is good stuff!  
EVERY POTENTIAL SQUICK WILL BE MENTIONED AT THE TOP OF THE CHAPTER IT HAPPENS IN.  
I’m not aching to write uncomfortable shit, but I don’t want to give the wrong implications that stuff COULDN’T come up under the certain circumstances and thus distress someone.  
But honestly, with tboi being about everything from every flavor of abuse to abortion, I expect you to have somewhat of a strong stomach to the canon-typical stuff.  
  
I think it's a bit unnecessary, but a reminder to be kind to each other as well as me, since it's... welp, nice! Really though, I haven't encountered anyone mean on here yet and I'd LOVE to keep it that way x3

(Of course, criticism can and will be harsh if it's deserved. I give everything to not take insults against shortcomings in my story personally, yet if you simply insult or don't explain yourself, then I won't be able to take you seriously, sorry...)

Last, but not least... enjoy!  
  



	2. Suppression (Judas/Cain)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cain and Judas are great friends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No bad stuff here, just a bit of fluff for these two! I got inspired by someone on tumblr who ships 'em and I'm using versions orientated on theirs!  
> EXCITING UPDATE, THEY SAW IT AND GAVE ME THE PERMISSION! Thanks Akira! So here is the wonderful blog, with these adorable characterizations! https://mourneruntosheol.tumblr.com - Seriously, give it a look, it's fully of both light-hearted character content as well as deep-lore and secrets!  
> Honestly, this is just mainly a test run, I'm really insecure with writing for this fandom. Still, I hope it will be worth your time!

Anxious.  
Tense.  
Paranoid.  
Slowly Judas scratched over the ground besides him.  
How did it even come this far?  
They had set out with their group, but now only two were left.  
Him and Cain.  
Down here, on the last floor before mother.  
Far, far away from prying eyes.  
Nobody would stumble into them, not on accident.  
They were well and truly alone among themselves.  
They really had an unlucky run, but Judas hardly could feel any concern about what happened to the others- they would be fine when they came back.  
'You look exhausted- here, how about we have a short break? Maybe play a bit of the next level?'  
Soft concern or just an excuse to play his beloved Gameboy?  
Now they were sitting beside each other, no matter how much Judas had insisted he was doing perfectly fine and that he wasn't like Isaac, always at the verge of breaking down any second-  
His face was so hot.  
He was so glad Cain never looked up from his game during these sessions. It felt like his own face would betray him, would give away everything he was so desperately trying to bottle up inside.  
"OH YES, finally- this part is so hard, I swear to god- look, Judas, look, now if I manage this one jump-"  
Something brushed Judas' back, robbing him of his breath for a few seconds.  
No, he didn't expect sitting here with his best (and only, really) friend would made be more complicated by the demon wings Cain had picked up during their exploration. Judas had offered to be the one taking it- he didn't particularly liked Cain sacrificing hearts- but it just wasn't possible, his health was already uncomfortably lacking, so his friend had simply picked it up without any second thought.  
Now the smooth black wings grew out of his back, shimmering in the yellow light of the flame, opening and closing as he got more and more focused on his playthrough.  
The texture of them were the exact same as Cain's skin and they were warm- each time they touched Judas it felt like Cain was gently putting a hand on his back, trailing it along his spine.  
It drove him nuts.  
Taking a shaky breath, Judas leaned over, taking the excuse of taking a closer look at the screen to lean against him for a few seconds.  
Nothing he saw registered, but it didn't need to, for a few valuable seconds he felt-  
_Indescribable, his heart beating, his mind spinning._  
But then Judas already had to pull away before he would do something foolish.  
_Something dangerous._  
Instead he let his eyes wander up to Cain's face, right in the second he had turned to smile at Judas, his smile even brighter than before.  
"Thanks for picking up this cartridge when you found it! Really a shame I can only play it when we're on the go, but that makes it more special, right?"  
"Yes- I guess." The words stumbled out of Judas, before he even quite got what his friend was talking about.  
The little cartridge trinket had quickly turned into one of Judas' favorite things, simply due to what it did to Cain.  
His happiness was infectious.  
His smile was like pure gold.  
As sappy and dumb as that sounded.  
Judas looked away, frustrated with himself.  
Why did he have to end up alone with him so far away from everyone else? It made his resolve crumble, it made him feel tempted and needy.  
His lucky friend had turned to explaining a few exploits he had found in the level- though he always wanted to beat a level fairly at least ONCE- and Judas tried his hardest to listen again, his anxiousness growing once more as he was acutely aware of how close Cain's hand was to his own.  
Then, out of nowhere, Cain moved his hand, gently placing it over the other boy's.  
It was as though he had his breath knocked straight out of him for a second or two.  
Completely baffled he looked up.  
  
There were many things Cain couldn't understand about Judas.  
He was abrasive, at points downright unkind, he was trying to act all serious but refused to believe there was a solution for their many troubles.  
But yet, here he was, sitting next to him, very quietly, seemingly trying to take up as little space as possibility, every muscle tensed up.  
You could say that Cain worried about him.  
Judas never said when he was afraid, when he was tired, Judas never admitted if he wasn't sure about something.  
Sometimes Cain admired this stubbornness- but oftentimes he caught himself wishing for it to be different, at least every now and again.  
If even he, his close friend, couldn't really read him- how lonely would Judas have to be?  
Surrounded by monsters of all sorts, when not even the safe haven is something to trust in- wouldn't that empty you out?  
No wonder he had such a hard time laughing about anything.  
Yet, there was more to Judas! Cain caught glimpses and little hints of another person behind that hardened shell.  
There should be a way to get him out of there.  
It was too much of a wonderful thing to be locked away forever.  
His hand was laying and Judas’, he had shut down the game for once.  
" _Judas_." He softly said.  
That expression.  
He had seen it on the other boy’s face before, but he couldn't understand it, no matter how often he saw it.  
This mixture of pain, fear, hesitation- and something else, something deeper.  
"Don't get all mushy on me." The bookworm said, but his voice was weak, quiet.  
"You're not doing great, I'm- worried, dude."  
"I'm fine!" Instantly he tried to pull away his hand from Cain, but Cain wouldn't let go.  
"You're not, Judas. And I wanna know what's going on! You're my friend. You haven't acted- right since we arrived on this floor."  
The expression of the other guy broke up even more and for a moment Cain was worried he might had taken it too far. This wasn't his specialty, no, he wasn't as good with people as Maggy, or as stoic as Blue.  
But he wanted to do _something_.  
"I'm-" Stuttering Judas started to try and justify himself, but there didn't seem to be anything he could try to justify. Finally, he started to try his face. "I- I can't tell you. I can't. _I can't_."  
Taken aback, Cain's touch loosened a little. No, he hadn't seen the other one like this ever before.  
Something really must be eating away at him.  
"You- you don't have to. I mean- I want to know. Because maybe I could help! I want you to know you can count on me, you know? You can trust me."  
There was this... something... back in Judas' eyes.  
A few seconds passed, seconds filled with some sort of static in the air.  
And finally Judas broke it, quietly mumbling something under his breath.  
"... sorry, what did you say?"  
_"... Cain, I can't- say anything, but- can I- I want to do something_."  
"Go for it!"  
There was confidence in Cain's voice, motivation. Hope.  
Maybe this was what he needed to finally get Judas. Even if just a little.  
Still hesitant Judas looked at him, but now there was resolve in his eyes.  
Nothing more was said.  
Judas’ hand was slowly placed on Cain's shoulder, radiating as much warmth as the fire beside them.  
He came a step closer.  
Suddenly, Cain felt incredibly weird.  
His stomach was tingling, it felt slightly harder to breathe.  
Everything seemed to slow down for a few second, not like with the stopwatch, but- as if the whole world, every aspect of it was slowing down, opening up reality itself completely for once.  
He felt so much lighter, so much more- aware.  
_Wait.  
What was this?_  
Judas was really close now, his eyes deep and dark.  
Even if Cain wanted to laugh nervously, he wouldn't be able to, his throat too dry.  
All he could do in this second was stand there, fully surrendered to the fact that what happened now was Judas' choice and Judas' choice only.  
Again he moved, and now he was even closer-  
Then Judas gently leaned down, placing his head on Cain's shoulder, holding him close.  
And after a few seconds, Cain wrapped his arms around him too.  
Keeping him there.  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was fun, though I’m sure I messed up the characters.  
> The content creator makes them really cute and unique!  
> I think sometimes in the future I'll write a Cain/Judas with my own version of the characters in my own AU-  
> And I'm absolutely writing Isaac/Greed, nobody can stop me.  
> Outside from that I don't have any ideas though, so please, if you want to see something, throw the idea my way!  
> I hope you enjoyed, thank you for reading!


	3. Divine and Conquer (Conquest/War)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There are four horsemen.  
> And then there’s Conquest.  
> War cannot help but come to see him every now and again. No matter how cheap of a knock-off he is.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For UnfinishedZizzy, thank you so much for your request!  
> I proceeded to think way too much about these two and their roles in the games and that’s just the kind of stuff I LOVE.  
> Hope you will enjoy it!
> 
> Warnings?  
> Gross concepts, like a small bit of bug mention, and Wrath is skinless, so if that freaks you out, here you go. Otherwise a bit of rival-lover dynamic.

There was a hierarchy that needed to be respected.  
Famine had always felt most comfortable on his own. Sure, it brought him to the bottom of the ladder, but he said he liked it there- easy pickings. Down in the basement, the children were still starving for power.  
Pestilence had always been fully complacent. Even the spreading of his disease was more accidental than anything else. Poison dripping in his wake, maggots crawling out of him. He himself just puked over the place, and sometimes that was enough.  
War was the third, because he had the full and deep intend of harm. He wanted to go to war with these children and he did, over and over again. Even at the cost of his beloved horse, even with the pain of stones digging into his feet when he ran too fast.  
He wanted to go all out, blow it all up until nothing but ashes were in his wake.  
And on the last floor, there was Death, who had declared himself the leader one day, the most powerful of them.  
Fair enough, considering he could control time itself to some degree and his scythes were sharper than reality.  
But that wasn’t his rightful place and War knew as much.  
Because War had seen him before.  
The fifth horseman.  
Riding on a snow white horse, and he remembered stories about a crown and a bow.  
Whenever he was on the deeper floors, he couldn’t help but want to find him, wanting to see what he was doing.  
What even WAS conquest?  
Instantly he found himself being angry again.  
Just another type of war.  
A cheap knock off copy that didn’t even do everything that War could.  
War could conquer too.  
Eat a land’s resources and kill the people living there, who lost the war, until everything was charred and black.  
Floating over the dark floor, the purple void constantly shimmering at the edges of his vision, irritating his eyes slightly. The floor, right before the golden gates, it was both his most hated place and most favorite place.  
It was filled with creatures of high status and power, unlike the depths, true enemies capable to put up a fight.  
Even if he wasn’t allowed to rampage yet, to unleash war- it was nice out of principle.  
… and because the white rider was easily spotted on this floor.  
He shined brighter than any ghost, as clean as the Holy Spirit.  
Why?  
How?  
Where was the difference between them?!  
Why did he himself smell of ash and blood, while this being smelled like ice?  
Think of the devil and he shall appear- when War entered the next room, there he stood, tall and shining, his horse moving rapidly from one side to side, as his rider surveyed the void, even without eyes to see.  
For a second War stopped his horse, simply to watch the creature.  
Hidden in the frame of the door, he felt fairly safe, believing himself to be invisible to Conquest’s perception… a grave mistake it turned out.  
“War. What are you wandering about like a lost soul?”  
This was a challenge.  
Anything he said was a challenge.  
War however grit his teeth and smiled. “I’m not wandering, I was looking for you. Looking for the forgotten horseman, as humanity calls you by now.”  
There was no challenge he wasn’t willing to accept.  
“Humanity will remember soon enough.”  
“Will they? They don’t even understand the difference between us. Hardly anybody does, really. You were never needed!” Without any input, War’s horse moved forward, letting out a loud breath, hot and aggressive.  
Conquest’s awful pony on the other hand had the gall to GRIN.  
“They will.” Moving closer as well, Conquest gave him a stern once over. “… not to mention, you are not at your height either. Maybe humanity remembers you, but you have sunken. Being at Mega Satan’s beck and call?”  
“THAT IS HARDLY MY CHOICE!” Angrily War responded. “ _DEATH THOUGHT IS WAS A GREAT IDEA AND I-“_  
“And you simply do what he says, huh? He always thought he was special.” Conquest scoffed and moved around War, causing him to quickly step back, trying to keep an eye on the other.  
“Well, at least he was more special than you.” Upset the red rider growled.  
Then out of nowhere a white hand was in front of his face and before War could try to defend himself, his nose was gently touched, a small flick.  
War winced for a second, before becoming alarmed, completely silent.  
“Stop repeating points, it makes it more obvious that you have nothing to say.”  
Conquest took a few more steps, before realizing that War had completely stopped in place, seemingly not listening to him anymore.  
Slightly concerned he raised an eyebrow. “… everything alright over there? You’re not going to explode on me, are you?”  
“… _it didn’t hurt_ …”  
“… what?”  
“It didn’t hurt- _your touch- it didn’t hurt_!”  
“Of course it didn’t, what are you-“  
But War had talked himself into a frenzy.  
“Usually, when people scratch me, when they grab me, when they touch me, it hurts- **why isn’t this HURTING!?** ” Harshly he grabbed Conquest, his expression turning harsher for a moment, then letting go again. “ _There it was_.”  
“Did you seriously just hurt _yourself_?” The white rider sighed.  
“I NEEDED TO SEE IF YOU REALLY COULDN’T HURT ME!”  
“You’re skinless. Of course slapping you in a fight would- wait, do you think hurting is normal when you touch others?” There was only a second, not long enough for War to actually respond. “You idiot.”  
There was hot shame growing inside War.  
How was he supposed to know?! Nobody ever touched him gently. Not his fellow riders, and certainly not the kids.  
“ _Don’t you DARE call me that!”_  
“Or what?” Raising his pony, Conquest smiled, getting into position.  
Now that was something that War could fully comprehend. “ _Or this will be a war_.”  
“ _You may know things about war, but you never learned why conquering is so much more important_.”  
Before the white rider could elaborate though, suddenly something flew his way and before he could register what it even was, War tackled into him.  
“Conquerors are led by foolish desires! They never will go all out! They hold back cowardly!”  
The pain of the tackle caused him to stumble and as the red rider flashed past him, the troll bomb in his arms blew up, causing his horse to buckle- but only for a second, before they rose up together, Conquest readying his retaliation.  
“Conquerors never need to go all out. My mission is divine!”  
Disappearing for a moment, as soon as War flew back in, giant pillars of light broke out from everywhere.  
Maneuvering to the side, he attempted to avoid the holy attack, but one of the beams singed his shoulder, sending glowing white agony through all his exposed nerves.  
Blinded for a moment, he flew headfirst into another beam, his pony crying out before being burnt away.  
Stumbling to the ground, for a moment War couldn’t move, tears welling up in his eyes as the ground roughly scratched over his muscles and body, but he shook the paralyzing pain off, spotting the floating rider and rushing towards him.  
He came close enough, violently trashing out, causing a bloody gash on Conquest’s body.  
Yet despite the hard hit, the other creature managed to stay up on his horse, calling out, creating four purple tears that instantly homed in on War, who was way too close to avoid it.  
The pain hit and once more he stumbled, forced to remain still-  
And before he could recover, Conquest roared, soaring over him, before jumping down from his horse, right on top of him, crushing him painfully against the floor, causing him to howl out in agony.  
No, he was stuck now, he couldn’t continue the fight.  
Now all he could was waiting for annihilation.  
The last strike however…  
… never came.  
Both anxious and upset, War looked up at the radiant figure above him, not understanding why he wouldn’t FINISH it- the horrid grin on the creature’s face didn’t give him any sort of clarity either.  
The pressure against his skin caused constant flashes of pain circulating through him.  
“… you know what the best part of conquering something is?”  
“Fuck off.”  
“… _you get to keep anything you want!”_ Shifting his weight, he allowed War to recover a little, the touch turning from painful to just mildly confusing.  
War wouldn’t give up this easy though.  
“You can think that, _but_ -“  
Before he could try to pull out another bomb, blowing both of them up, Conquest’s hand slipped onto his own, keeping him in place. “Don’t.”  
There was the cold, hard air of authority, causing War to freeze up and relent, relaxing his hands again.  
Even if the smug grin that returned on Conquest’s face really hurt his pride.  
“Good.”  
“Get off me.”  
“Not yet. First I need to mark you as conquered.”  
Instantly War started trashing again. “No, NO, you WON’T-“  
However, it was too late, Conquest had reached out and pressed his palm gently on War’s forehead, causing the spot to cool down a little under the smooth, cold skin.  
War managed to actually free himself, quickly crawling away, scratching over his forehead, instantly making it flame up in pain.  
It wouldn’t help though, he still felt weird-  
“Calm down already. Nothing is happening to you.” Shortly the white rider got distracted, looking at his fingers, that had taken on a red hue. With an expression of morbid curiosity he licked over them, in full view of the somewhat disturbed War.  
“In the name of Christ, what is WRONG with you.” War scoffed, but he got distracted, leaving the spot on his forehead finally alone, keeping the muscles from bleeding out any further.  
A full win on Conquest’s part.  
“I like learning new things. Something you will never do either. You will never change.”  
“Stop sounding so condescending!”  
“… but you are pretty cute when you are upset!”  
Frozen once more the red rider didn’t know how to react or what to say.  
Nobody talked to him like that.  
“… seriously did you fall on your head when we kicked you out of the group?!”  
Conquest chuckled. “You tell me! You are the one who constantly comes after me. I’m sure you would have seen it.”  
“IT’S NOT CONSTANTLY!”  
“I won’t complain, I do like seeing you.”  
It was as though every time War attempted to retaliate, Conquest changed the game, playing him at every turn.  
His mind was blank, there was nothing he could say to this.  
Dammit, once more he won.  
And he KNEW it.  
“… sit down with me, War. When was the last time you took a break?”  
“I AM sitting!” Irritated War spoke up. “I never spoke up since you JUMPED on me! Don’t you have a pair of e- oh. Right. _You’re blind, aren’t you?”_  
He couldn’t help it, at the last part he grinned. That WAS pretty pathetic.  
Whoever heard of a blind conqueror before?  
Once more Conquest raised an eyebrow.  
“… stop grinning. I still do very well. Frankly, not being able to see is truly a blessing.”  
“How so? You’re at a major disadvantage. How will you predict an ambush!?”  
“By knowing the enemy.”  
“That- makes no sense at all.” Frustrated War shook his head.  
“But it made you think! And it does. I know who I am going after and that will ensure I will adjust my tactic.” His pony made a small noise, which prompted Conquest to reach out and swing himself onto its back again “Ah yes. And Lucidus looks out for me. I have an ally to trust.”  
“… Lucidus?! That is a ridiculous name.”  
“It might be. But I had to name my partner, right? Don’t tell me your horse has no name at all!”  
“… well it’s- _I mean, he does_ , but-“  
“What’s his name, War. What is it.”  
Uncomfortable the red rider shifted. “… Brian.”  
“… _and you judged MY name choice_.”  
A loud neighing was audible, and there it arrived, the red pony, returned to full health. Upset War reached out, quickly getting ahold of his horse and getting on top of it, finally feeling like an equal to Conquest again.  
“At least my name is an ACTUAL name.” He huffed. “… I could have called ‘em something like Red.”  
“You called it Red before, didn’t you.”  
“… yes.” Finally giving in, War didn’t even feel upset anymore. Brian gently bumped his head back, trying to get a pet from his rider, to which he obliged.  
“It’s not a bad name.” Softly Conquest pointed out. “In the end, it’s about identity anyhow. We are what we call ourselves, but also much more. You are War. And you are more.”  
The white rider came closer and this time War didn’t try to move away.  
Something in him had shifted, after having been so close to the other one.  
There was a sting in his chest. _“… will we ever ride together, Conquest_?”  
“Of course we will. Once time ends. Once the LORD demands it.”  
“… we are not similar at all.”  
“True. But I hope you would consider us close, despite that.”  
They slowly moved around each other, creating a circle, almost like a slow dance, watching the other.  
Finally War stopped, moving in, close enough to touch the white one.  
_A touch that wouldn’t hurt for once._  
“… Conquest, I-“  
Suddenly a sound rumbled the place, shaking everything to its core- a low, growling laughter accompanying it.  
Instantly War backed off, slightly panicked.  
“I- need to go. The fight has started.”  
“It’s only Mega Satan’s call. You don’t have to bow to it.”  
“… I have to.”  
“You’re wrong. Only the LORD may call out for us.”  
“ _You know as well as me that we are not in the realm of the LORD anymore!_ ” For a second he lost control of his anger, just to regret it a few moments later. “… at least not right now.”  
For a moment it was silent, Conquest’s expression unreadable, his eyes still hidden well.  
War slowly floated back. “We will meet again. And if time has to end for it to happen, so be it.”  
“ _Promise to come see me again_.”  
The voice sounded oddly fragile.  
“I will. As soon as I can.”  
Finally the white rider was smiling again. “… so it did work. I conquered you.”  
For a moment War’s hand flew back to his forehead, but he stopped before touching it, giving him a snarl. “You idiot got it all backwards. I will come back to wager a war. And I will make you a spoil of it!”  
“Hah, I would like to see that. Surprise me. I will be waiting.”  
The fifth horseman watched as War disappeared, entering the void surrounding them, to join his fellow horsemen, in a pathetic battle against nobody at all.  
Eventually, Conquest would get through to him.  
He truly believed that. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again for the request and the fun headcanon about War being skinless!  
> I really need to learn to write romance better, heh- but I hope it was an enjoyable read anyhow! I love how holy Conquest is compared to the other horsemen and it’s really suspect how he never appears in the Mega Satan fight?  
> I like to think he’s the only one taking his mission still serious and thus has holy powers- the only reason he arrived in the basement to fight Isaac was because he thought Isaac was stealing Angelic Spoils, taking items that weren’t meant for him- even if they were.  
> Kind of like Krampus arrived because Isaac has been “too naughty”, making deals with the devil. It’s kinda sad to think that Isaac started to believe eventually that not even Santa Clause would think he has good in him.
> 
> But yeah, give me praise, give me criticism, give me another request, whatever you have in mind, I’d love to hear!  
> And if you won’t, well, at least have a wonderful day and I hope to see you here on the next chapter! ^D^


	4. Mom’s Locket

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You feel her love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to write prompts based on a trinket! Heavily headcanon based!  
> No warnings for anything, not even abuse mentions, surprisingly enough.   
> And in case someone is curious, you guys can ask for prompts based around items/trinkets too, even though I don’t know who would want that, pft-

The shop was quiet.   
The flames flickered, the Keeper’s body sat between them, peacefully.  
Isaac had entered the shop in hopes of finding something that would make the run a bit better. Greed always had some amazing things, though he didn’t always offer them.  
That was okay.  
You couldn’t demand from the Shopkeeper to hand over everything at any given point.  
There was only one item being offered.  
Mom’s purse.  
Well- it wasn’t really necessary. Isaac doubted he would get anything better than cancer. As awful as the trinket made him feel.  
Though then Isaac’s eyes wandered further, ending on something that shortly took his breath away.  
His mom’s locket.  
For a second Isaac felt frozen.   
  
Magdalene O. Moriah wasn’t a bad person.  
Never had been.  
Isaac had hated her for a long while, but looking back, he couldn’t anymore. He just couldn’t do it.  
The locket shined, beautiful and silver.  
He never really asked about it. Was the thing inside a ruby?  
Who gave it to her?  
Why?  
Isaac didn’t know.   
But he did know that he was given this locket sometimes.  
Big tests.  
Doctor visits.  
Having to stay alone for a longer period of time.  
After he scratched his knees.  
Mom was a faithful woman and scoffed at talismans and anything like it. She was very peculiar about what Isaac was allowed to carry around. For example, whenever he picked up shiny stones and said it felt lucky, she would try to lead him to bible stories about actually lucky rocks and how god’s guidance could show itself in many forms.  
As long as Isaac acknowledged it felt lucky because god might could use it for good things to come, she was happy.  
At least… back in the day.  
She became more hateful about trinkets as time went on, more panicked and hysterical about the boy “worshipping idols”.  
But never about the locket.  
Even at the very end, when everything was crumbling- even then she wordlessly handed him her locket when Isaac went to something important.  
‘ _This locket will help you Isaac, because I put my love into it. Whenever you go out and try to better yourself, know that I’m proud of you and my love is there for you. When you feel like the glass is half empty, know that with love, even that can be fulfilling. I love you_.’  
And it did work.  
Whenever Isaac was feeling ill and nervous, the smallest thing while wearing the locket reminded him to be happy. Whenever Isaac had to force himself through a new trial, this locket gave him a little boost of happiness.   
He still had it at home.   
Did his mom still love him?  
After everything?  
For a moment he reached out, but then hesitated.  
If he bought this, he wouldn’t be able to afford his mom’s purse… and then he would have to leave cancer behind.   
It was a lose-lose.  
A bit indecisive he stood there, not being able to decide.  
 _If it kept going like this, he would miss the boss rush._   
He shook his head and grabbed the locket, putting down five cents for the shopkeeper.   
Gently he put it around his neck, filled with memories.  
  
His mom was VERY careful when putting the locket around him. Just as careful as she was with the candles during Christmas and the little figure of Jesus on the cross that she sometimes took down when it was time to tell some bible stories.  
It was precious.  
Every bit of it radiated it.  
His dad always had disapproved of it to some degree- saying Isaac might break it or lose it and it was nonsense. Their son would be just fine with or without it.  
But mom always shushed dad.  
‘We all need some reminders that we’re loved when things get difficult.’  
‘Difficult? He’s going to the dentist. He will be fine. You need to stop feeding his delusions. He shouldn’t be scared in the first place.’  
‘You’re being difficult. It’s my locket anyhow, right?’  
They never were upset with each other, it was more like a soft nudging of the other.  
Isaac stayed quiet when they discussed, listening in carefully, trying to understand everything.   
Even still, these things were often a bit too difficult to him and he forgot easily about it.  
Though, heeding his dad’s words and his mom’s way of acting, he treated the locket with holiness and never got a scratch on it.  
… no.  
That was a lie.  
He treated it like it was holy, was because it was mom’s love, turned into a pretty form to be worn around the neck.  
The warm fuzzy feeling in his chest always made him feel better off.  
Whenever he went exploring, whenever he revealed something new- he knew his mother was proud of him.  
That was the most valuable thing in his world.  
  
Snapping out of his memory, he shortly sniffed, wiping his tears away.   
Again he looked at cancer, sighing, as he had to now leave that behind, before looking at the Shopkeeper- who seemed to have moved.  
 _Urgh._  
Sometimes they did that- but Isaac always hated it.   
His eyes wandered back to the purse he wouldn’t be able to-  
Wait.  
 _It was on sale?_  
 _How didn’t he see that before?_  
Hesitantly Isaac looked at the Keeper, but the body just was sitting there, dead as usual.  
“I-“  
There was something he probably should say, but he didn’t know what.  
Quietly he moved over, picking up the purse and putting down seven cents.  
“… thank you.”   
With that he picked cancer back up as well- instantly feeling ready to cry a river, thinking about his beloved pets who had passed away due to this- and quickly scuttled away.  
  
No, he didn’t want to miss the boss rush.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any criticism, feel free to throw it my way! I hope you have a great day!


	5. Greedy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Greed tends to only want things he can have.  
> But every now and again he cannot help himself but dream a little.  
> Two steam sales for the price of your sanity... sounds like a good deal, right Isaac?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Isaac/Greed, Greed is a possessive (greedy) guy wishing for a very unhealthy, controlling and manipulative relationship. If that’s comfortable for you, please do skip this one!   
> Though if you dislike that stuff then I'm sorry, because unless I get requests for other dynamics, 90% of it will be that, because I'm self-indulgent.

“One more round.”   
It was fast, it was satisfying.  
So why would he say no?  
There was something Isaac and Greed had in common. They were almost alike.  
They liked _things_.  
And they liked things of higher worth.  
No, not even that- it was about the options.  
There are options.  
When people asked Greed what made him different from Envy, that was his answers- he wanted to options. Envy didn’t care for WHAT it was as long as he took it from someone else.  
Hell, Envy would steal “The Poop” from Blue if he just saw Blue looking at it with mild interest.  
Greed didn’t quite care about taking from others- unless it was worth it.  
What he did care about was having a giant buffet of possibilities that he could take from as he pleased. Not everything. Just the right things. Everything should be available to him.   
Yes, that was what differentiated him from Gluttony too-   
Gluttony was about the sensation of getting, Envy was about the sensation of taking, but he, he was _having_ , he was _picking_ , he was _judging_.  
He was Greed.  
Isaac hadn’t done well lately.   
So he decided to create a little gift for him…   
Isaac wasn’t crazy about fighting.   
Judas was more the kind of guy who would face an arena.  
But what Isaac _did_ like was options.  
So what could he offer him better than a giant arena, with items on display for his picking pleasure, two item rooms per floor and a curse room if he felt risky?  
 _Not to mention Greed liked watching Isaac fight._  
He wasn’t really proud of that, but he couldn’t get enough from seeing him dance along the lasers and blood droplets, watch him weaponize what he had, _the look in his eyes turning from miserable to wanting, to live, to destroy, to grow-_  
One more round.  
The third floor, the depths already. Greed was sitting there, quietly watching Isaac walking around, inspecting his options.  
Only one more round?  
Well.   
Then he would make it special.   
_Steam sale.  
_ Isaac rerolled the book from the golden room and his eyes widened.  
Within a second he picked it up and rushed into the shop, his breath having picked up in excitement, Greed could feel his tiny heart beat in his chest even from his place, sitting in his usual position.  
A few more bodies were scattered.  
His dry lips twisted into a smile.  
 _There was no way Isaac wouldn’t try for it._  
And like on a string, the boy wandered over, took a deep breath and placed a bomb beside him and his other dead body.   
“ _I’m sorry Greed_ -“ His words were a hoarse breath.  
No, he wouldn’t hold it against him. Honestly, he liked seeing it.  
 _It was just what he himself would do._  
The bomb went off and he stood up.  
“ _Having fun, are we_?”   
Startled Isaac stumbled back, trying to avoid the attack. His voice had turned into a terrified squeak.  
“Y-YOU TALK-?!“   
“Hurry up Isaac! You do not want me this close to you, do you now?”   
“W-What- WHY- WHY DIDN’T YOU- _talk to me before_?!” The boy rushed towards the rocks, trying to hide from another round of attacks.  
Odd, seeing as Isaac had some nice upgrades. Picked up Holy Shot and even got a luck upgrade- fighting should be easy enough for him.  
“Isaac, you are thinking to much.” Greed summoned Hoppers, watching the human even when he turned to move a bit in the other direction. “Did you not come here to have fun? _How about you see what I will drop when I die?”  
_ “ _What you_ -“ Now he seemed to understand and those round and innocent eyes clouded with something.   
Something _ancient_.  
Part of him still hesitated, but his tears started flowing and he finally joined the fight.  
“ _That is exactly what I like to see.”_   
“… why?”   
A good question. Why would a monster, a king of the shops, want to be fought and robbed of his wares?  
But it wasn’t that. It never was about that.  
Their fight continued and ended reasonably quick, Greed feeling his body sizzle down into a mess. Quickly he slipped out his steam sale item.  
That tended to make Isaac want to come and visit him again.  
And now?  
Isaac went two steps then grabbed the item with shaky hands.  
Greed’s mind had switched into the next best hanging body, and he watched on for the show.  
First Isaac was a bit hesitant, but went for a rather good item. Growth hormone. Good choice.  
Buddy in a Box. Also pretty fun.  
Champion Belt.   
Something seemed to have loosened within Isaac at that moment.  
He turned to the book of shadows to the side and picked it up.   
It didn’t cost him anything after all.  
Another book.  
Isaac touched it and transformed, quickly adjusting his monocle.  
Then he smiled.  
 _And it was gorgeous._  
Items flew past quicker.   
Backpack. Odd Mushroom. Obsessed Fan. The virus. Euthanasia. _Spun transformation_. Match Book.  
Even more.  
Isaac stepped on top of the thing and proceeded to blindly grab everything within reach, laughing loudly.  
He didn’t even seem to care anymore.  
 _Active items started piling up.  
Unloved. Ignored. Useless. _  
Books. Buffs. Item generators.  
Finally Isaac stepped away, still giggling hysterical.  
There it was.  
 _Chaos_.  
“Thanks Greed!”   
For once he sounded as cheerful as he could be, but his eyes had turned unrecognizable. Blood and fluids were dripping from him, he seems almost overburdened with all he was carrying.  
Stepping outside, he began fighting-  
 _No.  
Slaughtering.  
_Beams, explosions and the bloody tears of the boy were moving all over the place, bouncing back from the walls, since Isaac had gotten so many range ups by now-  
Every wave took roughly a second before the timer reset.   
But Isaac himself wouldn’t stop leaving splashing of red anyways, commanding his army of followers to use their abilities to their best.  
Acid evaporated foe and environment alike.  
 _Nothing to fear anymore.  
_ Isaac couldn’t stop the laughter.  
That’s why he loved this place.  
His chest.  
Where nothing could get to him.   
Left and right, everything was eradicated, as beams shot out of him- bombs dropping from out of his pocket, _uh-oh_ , exploding bright in hundred different colors as poison, tears, fire and smoke filled the whole room, causing anything trying to hide to suffocate.  
Oh, how miserable it must be to face God as a fly!  
God.   
Godhead.  
He would not stop until he got it.  
Now that he got chaos!!!  
He liked it so much.  
 _Even if it hurt.  
Even if it caused his eyes to be melted shut_.  
He loved this power.  
Nothing was left-  
The rounds had ended.  
He should have noticed, but he had been so lost- only now that his tears had finally all dried, he could see the doors were open.  
Quickly he moved in, rerolling all the active items.  
Quietly he made a displeased noise.  
Breakfast, mainly.   
Well, what could he expect else?  
At least he could create an endless amount of meatboys with the potato peeler he had been saving in his backpack.   
So he began carving, not even feeling the pain anymore as he scooped pounds upon pounds away from himself, replacing it by downing the rotten milk without a second thought.  
More and more.  
Rare and rare.  
Abaddon.  
How cute.  
Celtic Cross.  
Why not?  
Rags, Judas Shadow, Guppy’s body- head- collar- tail- GUPPY!  
LEVIATHAN  
SERAPHIM  
BEELZEBUB  
YES, MOTHER?  
Items started stacking again, he wouldn’t have enough rounds to reroll them again-  
Constantly accidentally picking them up was such a chore-  
His head was getting dizzy.  
He was surrounded by creatures, that were starting to melt into each other under his fuzzy vision-  
 _But he felt great._  
Yes, sure, his throat was burning, his body was shaking, everything was ringing, but it was _AMAZING_.  
Everything gave him another moment of power, flowing through him.  
Even the pain was just another way in which his nearing god-status was showing itself.  
Range, tears, damage, speed-   
His feet were stumbling over each other as he just kept taking, unable to see the items even if he wanted to-  
Greed watched him from the wall, still smiling, more peaceful now.  
Isaac was just perfect like this. Mutilating himself without a second thought, to gain MORE, not because he needed the power, it didn’t even increase his power at all, he couldn’t use half the things he was picking up, but it felt GOOD, it felt RIGHT.   
_Right_?  
The Sin knew exactly how Isaac was feeling right now and from the way Isaac glanced at him between item respawn showed him the boy knew the exact same fact now.  
And wasn’t that what love was supposed to be?  
 _Becoming one and the same?  
_ It was like they were acting together, at the exact same thing, making noises of disappointment, or of joy, depending on which item finally showed up.  
 _Godhead, godhead, all I want is godhead-_  
A price higher than any other.  
 _Hearing Isaac crying out in wanting, so loud he could hear it even without a word being said._  
 _He was ripe, like a red apple, just waiting to be bitten into._  
And while Isaac was diminishing the item pool still, Greed cut his rope with his claws and landed behind him.  
There was no way the guy would be able to hear him- not with everything going through his head right now.  
Gently he put a hand on his shoulder, feeling nothing but deep-  
…  
 _Was it really love?  
_ Maybe he shouldn’t get ahead of himself.   
But it certainly was warm and powerful and full of believe in everything that was good in this world.  
 _That even what was rotten, could be beautiful and desirable- that everything could be loved.  
With the right partner.  
There’s nothing sinful about you, Isaac. You showing your worst is gorgeous.  
_“Thank you Greed…” Isaac had turned around and wrapped his arms around his neck, holding him close- close enough that Isaac’s rib left a red stream on his body, slightly cutting the skin. The words dripped from his mouth like honey. “ _How can I repay you_ ~?”   
But Greed just gently put a hand on Isaac’s arm.  
“The Virus is messing with your mind, Isaac. You do not need to repay me.”   
“ _Ow, but it would be fun…!”_ Drunkenly Isaac giggled, his face red as though he had a fever.  
Yes, the Virus was bad- even worse was that it burned into Greed’s skin too.  
But he had to control himself.  
He wouldn’t perish here and now.  
Teasingly the monster dropped him down, in a dancer’s pose, enjoying seeing the other being’s unfocused eyes wandering all over his own.   
He could almost feel that greedy glare.  
“ _You have gone too far. And now you are mine. Your soul has rotten under all these items, and you will now have to become another vessel of mine_.”   
It sounded weird. A mix of threat and matter-of-factly, with a smile mixed in.  
But Isaac just laughed loudly.  
“Or what? You cannot hurt me Greed. You cannot dream of hurting me! _You are weak_.”   
“So, you plan on taking me on in MY lair? That I made just for you? I would love to see you try.”   
“ _I’ve beaten you before_.” Isaac whispered, mania glowing from his eyes. _“And I loved it. I will do it again.”  
_ “Again?”   
“ _I will destroy you and keep your pieces_!”   
Greed chuckled.   
Oh dear, Isaac really started to sound like him, didn’t he?  
Well, not like what he would SAY, but… he couldn’t blame Isaac for being a bit out of it. A bit uncontrolled.  
“If only you could, right?”   
“ _I have demands- I- you have t-to talk to me more often! I want to ask you s-so many questions_!”   
His mind was already unraveling, and Greed would just speed that process up.  
With a smile.  
As much as he loved keeping Isaac like this-   
He had to let go.   
Those were the rules.  
 _For Isaac’s sake.  
For the highest price.  
His lucky little penny.  
_An expression of confusion showed up on Isaac’s face as he grabbed Greed a bit harder.  
This was the best and worst part of this.  
“Greed, I- I don’t feel so good…”  
He started to become weirder, faded, the colors changed, blocks broke out of him.  
“G-greed…?”   
“It is okay Isaac. Do not be scared. Let me take care of you.”   
  
**_WARNING.  
ERROR 0x36451475. Server 0x000000008 not found. Operation ‘read’ could not proceed.   
Press OK to shut down program now_**.  
  
When Isaac opened his eyes again, he was back at the third floor.   
Quietly he rerolled the book to pick up steam sale, still feeling confused, his memory a little hazy.  
He walked inside and went right to bombing Greed- who did stand up and fight him.  
This time though, he stayed silent.  
And he dropped nothing but coins.  
Isaac stood over the pile of coins, quiet, his eyes wandering around to the other bodies.  
Then he just picked it up and bought himself a few items, to the new and cheaper price.  
Slowly he let his finger run down a reddish line that was along his stomach, a little wound, not enough to hurt, but enough to be noticeable.   
… maybe he should play one more round. After this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Phew, that was a bit weird. Based on my actual Greed Mode run that I had, that ended by it crashing, because I took too much- when I booted it up, I was at the beginning at the same floor, but couldn’t get my hands on the steam sale again.
> 
> Anyways, writing this has given me some terrible ideas.  
> I’m both tempted to write a drabble of Boss!Isaac (who would be a pretty evil bastard) and Blue Baby, shipping them in my WORST crackship, or write a before-basement AU with Maggy making friends (and more because I ship, that's what I do) with Azazel to the tune of “You ain’t never had a friend like me” (the metal version).   
> If you have any thoughts tell me which one is worse, so I can maybe hurt less people. Or not. There’s really no “worse” between pest and cholera- 
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	6. Pandora’s Box

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lazarus found a whole lot of hell, ever since he came here.  
> But maybe there’s something else too?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For TheLilithiumEscape, thank you for your request!  
> A stern and formal Eden, a timid and fearful Lazarus!  
> Also, every day I think how Pandora’s Box and Missing No is actually Lazarus’ item, despite fitting much better to Eden.  
> Weird, isn’t it?  
> By the way, no real warnings on this one, it's pretty tame and just two people getting some soft feelings for one another.

There are few things more terrible than dying, but there ARE things more terrible than that.  
For example dying twice.  
Ever since he ended up here, that was his fate.  
_Dying twice._  
And there was plenty of things that wanted to kill Lazarus.  
_Twice._  
There hardly was anything that DIDN’T try to kill him!  
The SPIDERS in this place, the FLIES in this place, there were BOMBS that dropped out of nowhere, spikes on the ground-  
At least Lazarus figured out that his tears and blood seemed to hurt these creatures- though he hated how he found that out.  
He tried to stay in the basement, but over short or long he just faded away, more and more monsters spawning and no hearts to help him recover.  
It was agonizing, but he forced himself at last to enter the giant crimson doors with the clear sign of the skull on top.  
What he found in there was TERRIFYING.  
_But when he died, he just woke up again.  
_So he had no choice but to face it, breaking down soon after, turning into a weeping mess.  
He didn’t want to be here.  
Dear god he didn’t want to be here.  
Yet, there was nothing he could do to get out.  
Maybe there was an escape, somewhere deeper down…  
_… yeah right. For sure._  
The problems didn’t stop there though.  
Another level down, right after slaying another terrifying, ungodly beast, a horrid sound rung through the air and when Lazarus jumped around, there was a giant black door, crowned by a goat skull with curved horns.  
While stumbling backwards, trying to avoid whatever abomination would undoubtedly crawl out of there in a moment, Laz accidentally stepped into the trapdoor-  
And with that he was gone.  
Another floor.  
At least he didn’t have to face whatever was in that terrifying looking door.  
Once more Lazarus made his way through a new floor… hating it even more than the former one.  
Dear god.  
Where those walking skeletons-  
Were that guts hiding under a skull-  
This was a terrible, TERRIBLE place!  
Hurry up, hurry and get through this.  
Might as well face what he had to, how much worse can it really get?  
_He wasn’t allowed to break down, he didn’t want to go back-_  
Out of breath he stood over another enormous corpse of a boss monster, before it splattered everywhere, causing Laz to move back and try to shield his eyes from the thick dark red liquid splashing everywhere.  
Thankfully not much hit him.  
Quickly he whipped his head up, trying to spot the exact moment the terrible door would open-  
_Another sound._  
But this time it was different.  
It felt… better.  
Bright and high.  
Another door, but this time it was clear white, as though made from alabaster.  
_It was beautiful_ \- but what was it?  
A gently blue glow flickered from inside.  
Curious the bandaged boy sneaked closer to the entrance, hoping that he could sneak a peek inside without having to enter- just in case.  
Inside it was cold, but also incredibly clean. A large statue of an angel stood there; its arms opened in a giving gesture. Light shined through the colorful windows that depicted different religious scenes happening.  
His eyes wandered a little further, and he almost choked on his own breath.  
There was someone- _something_ \- standing there, hair a clear white and brushed to one side. In the odd light of the room, their skin seemed to almost have a bluish hue.  
For a second Lazarus thought it was another statue- but no, the person moved slightly, their grasp tightening around the rosary in their hands.  
A small gasp escaped the Risen, while he stumbled backwards he realized he had been ogling another human being instead of just a marvelous piece of art- and at the noise, the other person moved their head to meet gaze with the boy, completely freezing him up.  
Those eyes were unnaturally bright, as though there was light coming from within them.  
It was-  
And with that Lazarus stepped into the trapdoor on accident again.  
_God, for a second time?!_  
Dazed the redhead promised himself to always look behind him in the future.  
But that other person didn’t leave his thought at all, even during the fall.  
Those slender fingers wrapped around the beads of the rosary, it seemed so elegant and inhuman-  
Those clear eyes-  
It didn’t take long for Lazarus to succumb to his wounds on the next floor.  
_But those eyes wouldn’t leave him._  
  
It wasn’t fair.  
It never had been fair.  
The demonic creature opened its wings, laughing, before rushing towards Lazarus, moving far, far too quickly.  
Desperately the guy cried into its direction, some tears making contact with a terrible sizzling noise.  
The basement around them creaked, the demon seemed completely out of place.  
Abruptly it stopped and brimstone erupted into four direction, causing the human to walk into one, burning his skin brutally, his head spinning.  
Trying to use this as his chance, he once more attacked with the last of his strength and finally, FINALLY, the demon cried out in agony, shaking-  
_Only to break into two._  
Both of them turning to eye Lazarus with a horrid grin on their faces.  
One spit bloody drops at him, while the other moved into a more advantageous position, then doing the same.  
While he could escape the first row of bullets, he couldn’t move fast enough for the second and the sting of utter misery flowing through his whole body, as it made contact, was enough to finish him off.  
He broke down to the ground, weeping, his tears turning first hot, then very sticky-  
New life washed through him, but he couldn’t stand up.  
He couldn’t do this anymore.  
_It had to end now.  
Right now._  
Out of his blurry vision he saw a black smudge coming towards him, doubtlessly to finish him off.  
_At least it would be over then._  
There was no way he could fight anymore.  
No matter what happened after this, it would be at least the end.  
He quietly took his last breath before another brimstone would vaporized his fragile body.  
_Or rather, that was what he thought he was doing._  
There was a flash of white and a demonic scream.  
A pair of footsteps sounded beside Laz, who was trying to protect his head, a desperate attempts, as his whole body was still hurting and dripping with blood.  
There was more rapid sizzling, the steps seemed to dance about as the monster screamed out in frustration… and that’s when Lazarus couldn’t help himself, he had to look out between his closed fingers.  
The angel stood there, their white hair shining against the dirty muddy brown of the wood and dust surrounding them. A halo shined above their head, a white book was under their arm, and a clear, bright shield had formed itself around them, finishing off whatever doubt Lazarus had before that this being WASN’T an angel.  
While the demon screeched and howled, it was being beaten down, the other half already vanished into a bloody pile.  
Swiftly the other one followed, suffering the same fate, and finally, the shield around the angelic figure disappeared as well, leaving them standing above the pile of guts.  
A pedestal appeared, a black robe floating on top of it.  
There still was no strength in Lazarus’ arms, he couldn’t bring himself to even try and stand up. It probably looked pretty pathetic, but he couldn’t help it, all he could do was lay there and watch the angelic being turn to him and watch over him with those weirdly bright eyes.  
Eventually they seemed to realize that the redhead wouldn’t stand up on his own and slowly walked over, kneeling down beside him.  
“… are you hurt badly?”  
Their voice was rather weird too, Laz just couldn’t figure it out. It reminded him of people, of… _everyone_ he ever knew in a way. But in a good way.  
“N-no-?” Pointlessly the boy muttered, as though the blood running down his body would allow for any other interpretation.  
Then again, angels didn’t know how human bodies worked, do they?  
“Good. You might want to stand up. But you can take your time. The demon left behind a good item, maybe you want it.”  
Confused Lazarus finally gathered the strength to sit up a little. _“… why would an angel tell me to pick something demonic up…?”  
_For a moment, the being of light looked at him and tilted their head, then their expression turned from confusion into- still confusion, but slightly more flustered.  
“Angel?”  
Instantly embarrassed too, the redheaded boy forced himself up. “I- I saw you before… in front of the angel statue…”  
“Yes, I remember. But… _I am no angel_.” With a bit of a smile the white-haired person shook their head a little. “I am Eden.”  
“… Eden.” He let the name remain on his tongue for a moment, a name so bright and clear, so unusual that it felt like a little treasure in itself. “… nice to meet you, Eden. I’m Lazarus. But, uhm- you can call me Laz…?”  
While stretching out his hand, it kind of hit the boy what he probably looked like.  
_A dead body standing straight, blood dripping down, but without actually showing any wounds, his skin probably unnaturally pale at this point, as it tended to turn, once he started to lose blood.  
Walking corpses were unnatural, cursed, unholy by nature.  
_The fact that this person even bothered coming by to help him was beyond kind.  
Quickly he retracted his hand, a short flicker of an emotion passed Eden’s expression, but it was too far for him to recognize what it was.  
“Lazarus.” They nodded. “It is good to meet you. Now, about the items. Am I right in saying you do not want it?”  
“No way. I’m not touching that.” Uncomfortable Lazarus shuddered, watching the black fabric that seemed to radiate something evil.  
To his surprise though, Eden walked over and picked it up without hesitation, putting it around his shoulders.  
“You are wise to refuse it, if it would come with a price I would not have taken it either. But it is free and we cannot chose what we take along on our journey. _It is also better than waking up with horns and fire in your throat one day._ ” There was an eerie seriousness to these words.  
Lazarus instantly noticed the change in the other one’s body language.  
Instantly he reached out to touch their shoulder, his voice quiet. _“… it’s not the horns and brimstone that makes a demon a demon.”  
_Eden’s eyes met his own, some hidden shock in the back of it.  
There was silence, before the white-haired human smiled again, the same slightly detached smile. “… brave words from someone who seemed so scared last time we have met.”  
“H-hey!” A bit insulted Lazarus crossed his arms. “Have you LOOKED around this place?! It’s hell! It’s basically hell! You can travel around easily, because you definitely have at least some angelic ties, but me? _I’m screwed_!”  
Eden’s eyes moved over the other one’s features, a thoughtful expression on his face. “You say you have no ties to the angels above…?”  
“I’m-“ His voice broke off for a moment, before he looked away. _“… it is hard to feel them down here. I feel like I did something wrong. I wish I just knew what.”  
_It was quiet for a moment, but then the angelic being turned and moved towards the trapdoor.  
“W-wait, where are you going-?”  
Shortly Eden stopped, turning slightly. “We wanted to go to the next floor, right?”  
“We-?”  
Both of them looked at each other, frozen in place, tension rising for a moment-  
Before Laz sighed, slightly relieved. The expression of the other person was genuine, though the boy would have appreciated if Eden would have explained their plans FIRST.  
Rushing forward, he joined in and got ready to step down the trapdoor.  
“… you don’t like to explain yourself, do you?” His eyes remained for a moment on his companion, before shaking his head. “Figures.”  
“I apologize.”  
“Wh- no, no, no, it’s fine! It’s fine. I get what you mean after all, so- it’s okay. As long as I’m not totally lost, you’re not doing anything wrong.” He smiled at his new friend(?), before holding out his hand. “So… jumping down?”  
Eden looked wide-eyed at the hand, then at Lazarus, then at the hand again.  
Though eventually they reached out to carefully put their hand into the one from the smaller guy.  
Together, they jumped.  
  
Eden was… weird to deal with.  
Lazarus had been watching them as they traveled together, but it was a bit difficult as Eden turned around every so often, talking to him.  
“You seem braver now.”  
“… it’s- it’s easier to do things when someone is with me.”  
“How so?”  
“Uh. Well. It’s just…” How can you explain that? “It’s easier to see a reason to keep moving, when someone is with me.”  
“Interesting. Thank you for sharing.”  
The boy gave him a look. “… you’re making me feel like a science experiment.”  
“Why?” The surprise seemed genuine, but the question was just-  
No, he couldn’t help it, Laz had to laugh a little.  
“Because- because of that.”  
“Of what?” Even more concerned now, Eden stopped walking, letting the freckled guy pass him, he was still smiling.  
“… don’t worry about it. It’s not that bad.”  
Eden hurried to catch back up with him.  
Yes, it was a bit of a challenge, but Lazarus quickly grew comfortable around the angelic person, feeling reassured by their knowledgeable and calm persona, and their powerful fighting ability.  
They were nimble and quick and seemingly could predict any enemy’s movement.  
Even if they denied it- Lazarus was sure they were an angel.  
A real angel…  
_… they always seemed so far away, back before the basement. Lazarus believed, with all his heart in salvation- but he knew there was no chance he would get anywhere near an angel. Now though he seemed to somehow have gotten his personal guide through this hell. Even if he couldn’t possible deserve that._  
_Maybe it wasn’t all that bad-_  
The next room shook him out of his thoughts, there was a golden chest guarded by a few spikes.  
Curious the guy stepped closer, trying to see if he could sneak in between the edges of the spikes, if he set his feet just right-  
Suddenly he was grabbed and yanked back, tightly hugged against the warm chest of the person who was with him.  
His mind shortly stopped working.  
Somehow, he expected them to be cold, like a statue.  
Not this- living, breathing warmth-  
“ _What were you doing!?”_ Eden’s voice wasn’t loud, it was even quieter than normal, but the stress was clear. “ _You almost got hurt_ …”  
“I- I just- I thought-“ Why was his voice so erratic? Why was he so confused? He didn’t feel scared or like Eden was angry with him, yet he still felt his voice giving out. “I wanted to see what- what’s in that golden chest…”  
“You want to see what is in that golden chest?” The white-haired person repeated, trying to confirm it.  
“Yes, of course I do… but I suppose if there’s the spikes-“  
Finally Eden let go of him, passing him and before Lazarus even knew what was going on, the angelic being moved towards the spikes, stepping onto them without hesitation.  
Yes, they winced, but their expression didn’t change, as they took out a key and unlocked the chest, quickly moving back again, taking the chest along.  
It popped open, revealing a blue… head?  
It was smooth and clean and felt oddly… solemn.  
Eden however seemed to recognize it and smiled delighted.  
“Fate! You truly have a good instinct. Take it, it will grant you angelic wings.”  
That was the last thing he was thinking about though.  
“Ah- you’re hurt, Eden!” Upset Lazarus grabbed Eden’s hand and dragged them down onto the floor with him. “Show me your feet, I need to bandage them up. I’m- _why did you do that_?!”  
“… you wanted what was in the chest, right…?”  
“ _But I didn’t want you to get hurt_!”  
“Why are you so… upset…?”  
“Because you are hurt because of me-!“ He didn’t have anything to bandage his friend, but he shook his head and with a swift movement he ripped off parts of his own bandage, patching the bleeding spots up on his friend up instead.  
The other human was watching him, their face unmoving.   
“… you should not worry about me. _That is what I am here for_.”  
“ _No_! No, nobody is made to be hurt-!“  
Quietly Lazarus sighed, relieved when he had stopped the bleeding, now standing up again.  
“That- that should do it. I’m sorry, I don’t… have what I need to fix you up properly…”  
Eden’s eyes were still laying on him, deep and bright. It caused a small, odd shiver to run down Laz’s back, even if he couldn’t tell why.  
It wasn’t fear…  
“ _Thank you, Lazarus_. Now you should take your wings.”  
“No. You take them.” A bit red in the face, the redheaded boy turned away again, holding his own hands. “You- you need them more. And they fit you better too.”  
“I disagree with that-“  
“ _Take the wings, please. I want you to have them_.” He had turned a little quieter, yet there was far more determination inside of his words.  
Again Eden hesitated, but then they relaxed and reached to touch the blue head. It disappeared, as two giant white wings sprouted from their back.  
It caused Lazarus to stay a moment, stunned.  
_It looked beautiful.  
Who would have thought something like that could be found in this terrible basement?  
_Eden looked at him, making him feel rather embarrassed. Ogling again, like some bad-mannered person…  
“You are incredibly charitable, Lazarus.”  
These words caught him off-guard. “What- no, no! Not at all! It’s only fair- you got hurt to get it!”  
“But without you I would not have even bothered to try and open it.”  
“Still, you’re just- it feels more right on you.”  
_“… and you thinking like this makes me believe that you are the one who should have them.”_  
Lazarus felt his face heat up even worse than before. “Let’s not fight over this.”  
“Wise decision.” Gently the other person floated upwards, their wings flapping gently. “… but I cannot let you walk while I fly.”  
“I’m- I’m fine with it! Maybe we find another set of wings later… I walked all the way here, I can walk a little longer.” In hopes that it would help, he flashed a little smile at his friend, but before he really could, they swooped down and swiftly grabbed Lazarus, picking them up.  
They were now flying together, it felt incredible-  
_Flying was so nice…_  
Eden’s arms were strong and oddly enough, despite now having to worry about being dropped, Lazarus felt safe.  
“… though for a boss fight, I will have to put you down. I apologize-“  
“Don’t! Don’t apologize! Th-thank you for holding me like this.”  
_“… I do not know what it is_.”  
Suddenly Eden spoke up, their voice… different than before.  
_“… I have met a few holy people before…”_  
“I’m- I’m not holy though…” Pointless, he was being ignored fully.  
“… _yet_ _with you it is different. I_ _feel… even more inclined to watch over you than anyone else. You are… different. You smile instead of frowning_.”  
“Ah-“ Worried the boy reached out for Eden. “… _did somebody mistreat you_ …?”  
“No, not at all.” Reassuring the angelic being gave a smile- it seemed cold for a smile, but Lazarus knew it was genuine. “But it still was very much… different.”  
It was quiet for a moment.  
The heat was still firmly on Lazarus’ face, he worried that it was obvious.  
He couldn’t help it, he had to ask.  
“… do you really think I’m angelic…?”  
“You have been reborn, Lazarus. You are pure.”  
“Ah-“  
Rebirth.  
He didn’t even think about it like that.  
_Rebirth, instead just extended torture. Instead of just a second death- there was a second life.  
_But something else popped into his mind.  
“… Eden, what is waiting for us below?”  
“Hell. A demon infested place. A terrible mother and unholy womb.”  
“Do we have to go there…?”  
“There is nowhere else to go, Lazarus.”  
“… will you go all the way down there with me?”  
“Of course.”  
It wasn’t even a question.  
Lazarus slowly leaned against Eden’s chest, closing his eyes.  
“Then… I’m not afraid.”  
After that, there was only silence.  
But that was okay.  
It was the good kind of silence.  
The silence from within a cathedral.  
And Lazarus felt happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Phew, that was fun! I hope I managed to nail your versions of these characters, while still offering some unexpected things! I hope you had fun reading this, I certainly enjoyed writing it.  
> The other request of Judas/Samson will take a while, since other things are coming up, if you have any criticism/tips, please do share them with me for next time!  
> There was so much I wanted to add, but I didn’t want it to end up too long-  
> Thanks for reading and until next time!


	7. Angelic Prism

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Judas gets an angel deal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My Judas, my universe, just a thought I had, a little drabble. Hope you’ll enjoy!

There are so many disgusting things down below, inside of the basement.   
So many unlovable, unwantable things.   
Nothing was above anything else, really. It all was equally pathetic.   
Sinners and saints walked the same steps, died to the same creatures, started the same process all over again.   
_Only Judas was above them._  
Because of his little book.  
A source of power. Of the _beyond_.   
  
But… sometimes even the beyond wasn’t enough.  
  
Judas groaned to himself, finishing up the fight against the giant maggot.   
Or whatever it was trying to be.  
It had been a BAD run. He was already on the second floor of the Caves and yet, nothing the devil had offered him had been even remotely appealing to him.  
Red chests filled with spiders, or trying to make him sell his soul for stupid ass Sister Maggy, a more useless item there couldn’t have BEEN, even if an item TRIED.   
Even BOB’S BRAIN was more valuable and that tended to kill you more than anything else!  
There weren’t many more opportunities left for a good deal.   
Whatever was in here, he might had to take for the sheer sake of NOT wasting the run completely.  
He turned to where he fully expected the devilish door to appear out of nowhere, with a bone-shuddering, unmelodic music accord-  
  
But not this time.  
This time the music was far more gentle and bright.  
  
 _An angel deal…?_  
  
It was rare that he stumbled over these. He usually had committed a few terrible sins by now- but he supposed, after giving to the beggar, the angels were rather charitable as well.  
Pft.  
As if it had been charity motivating him.   
He entered the big door, scrounging up his face as his feet touched the icy ground of the cathedral’s halls, the air being heavy with the smell of incense.   
It burned in his lungs and gave him a bit of a headache, but he decided to move in anyhow, seeing what was hovering in the statue’s hands.  
His eyes widened slightly as he spotted it.  
  
 _The angelic prism._  
  
There weren’t any beautiful things in this world.  
 _Except the prism._  
The prism was beautiful.  
Despite barely any natural light hitting it, it left multicolored specks below itself, around itself, coloring in its surroundings with this clear, _living_ light-  
Drawn closer, Judas approached, his eyes firmly captured by the flickering of light and color.  
 _… but if only that was all- if only that was ALL!_  
The prism was made out of clear glass, or perhaps crystal, shining by itself, so clean-  
 _Untouched even._  
As though no dirt, no dust, no fingers had ever graced its surface.  
Ice, perhaps from the gates of heaven, up above.  
You couldn’t TOUCH the angelic prism, even when you were graced by it, instead it orbited you at a distance, reflecting, splitting, echoing everything you put into it.  
It didn’t matter WHAT it was.  
Being touched by the prism cleared it.  
Be it Brimstone, lasers or a knife, no matter what it was, when it touched the prism, something- happened. _Something wonderful._  
Judas sometimes had wondered how the angelic prism would affect people, if people could be broken down like the tears and lasers and…   
_Was there a thing opposite to a shadow?  
Not a reflection, instead something… better?  
The best you had to offer…?  
_Quietly Judas sighed, closing his eyes for a split second, before greedily opening them up again, soaking up the light once more, incapable of pulling away.   
What do you see inside the prism?  
 _The sky, the moon, the stars.  
Yourself.  
_Yourself far, far up above, joined by all those wonderful, holy things, so much older than yourself, yet still belonging to you, with you belonging to them.  
  
Slowly Judas reached out for the prism.  
  
 _It was beautiful._   
_It didn’t belong here._   
And everyone who saw it, knew it.  
Judas wanted it.  
 _He wanted it so much.  
Every fiber of him burned.   
_This prism, this prism that everyone would look at, would want, the prims that was a mirror into god’s own kingdom-  
 _Once he was dead, once he was gone, someone else would pick it up.  
_  
His hands slowly closed around the prism, knowing this was his only chance to ever hold it, for merely a moment, before it would distance itself.  
 _  
The thing with beautiful things was that their worth wasn’t only in their beauty, but partially in their rarity._  
  
It wasn’t just dust that dulled the appearance and aura of any given thing.  
It was also being worn down by all the eyes wandering over them.  
 _Little by little, something beautiful became mundane, forgettable, as all the eyes had feasted upon its uniqueness, until it was nothing.  
_ Anything could be consumed by the thoughts of all that was around it.  
As soon as you took something off its pedestal, it began the abrupt process of rotting.  
  
 _Juda’s fingers tighten even more, a loud crack sounding.  
Then he began smashing the prism against the ground, shattering it and for a second coloring the world around him in all colors of the rainbow.  
Again and again he smashed it down.  
Again and again, the room flickered.  
Until nothing but white dust was over the ground.  
_  
Wistfully Judas sighed, his eyes slowly wandering over the few remaining shards.  
 ** _Oh, he loved the angelic prism so much._** _  
_Nobody would get their hands on it.  
It would not lose any of its shine today.  
One day, in the future, it would be dirtied and muddied, going blind from age and everyone’s thoughts.  
But today he had pushed that future off, a little bit at least.  
And that was enough to fill him with joy.  
  
He turned away, leaving the room, knowing that the angel had watched him.  
There would be no other angel deal this run.  
And that was for the best.  
After all, everything down here had to be unlovable and unwanted, or it would be turned into such.   
But even as dust and shards, Judas loved the angelic prism.  
 _Nobody else_ could claim that about themselves. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, this was a weird one, huh?  
> I wanted to visualize how Judas interacts with the things that he wants and loves. My Judas is a strange one.  
> Anyhow, hope you enjoyed!


	8. Blood-stained Bandana

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Samson has more than a few hang ups and in an odd way, Judas seems to represent all of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IT’S ONLY BEEN A YEAR, I’M TOTALLY NOT LATE!  
> I’m sorry, Loopimay/TheLilithiumEscape, I am so, SO sorry. Maybe you’ve moved on from the fandom, but at least I want to do your wonderful characters justice!
> 
> Anyhow, not my versions of them, Judas/Samson, and it’s surprisingly healthy for a ship involving Judas- which doesn’t mean it is THAT healthy, but y’know, it’s not a dumpsterfire.

Judas was doing his thing, in his favorite area.  
The Sheol, where the dead and the living mingled, where it was always dark and the demons roamed freely, as though they owned the place- which they very well might did.  
It was here where Judas felt like he could recharge the thing he considered special about himself.   
Where the darkness gave him cover and gave him time to think.  
Where he was alone.  
Well- alone as far as someone who was always followed by his own shadow could be.  
Today however, he felt even more odd about something.  
His neck prickled as though someone was watching him and while he moved from room to room, fighting for his right to remain down here, it only grew stronger.  
This wasn’t the usual oppressive, yet silent presence of his many shadows.  
 _This was something living and breathing._  
Abruptly he began running, without any warning signs, moving abruptly through multiple doors, going left, right, straight and then-  
He abruptly stopped again, hiding right next to the door, getting ready to capture his stalker-  
And there it was moving forward at a quick pace-  
Judas reached and grabbed-  
  
“ _Samson_?!”   
  
Bewildered Judas let go of his warm skin, staring him down.   
They had met a few times before, Samson always acting-  
Frustratingly.  
It had been from their very first meeting where he had tried to take him down a peg just to find that Samson simply accepted all his words without even a hint of annoyance, to their second meeting where Samson had unnerved him with an uneasily correct assumption that Judas pitied the Mulligans.  
This guy wasn’t SUPPOSED to know he felt bad!   
_Everyone was supposed to look at Judas and be scared of his absolute soulessness!  
_ … it was hard to fool Samson. _Maybe even impossible_.   
Judas crossed his arms, stepping back a little bit more.   
“… what are you doing here? And why are you stalking me so creepily?”   
Dusting himself off, the guy with the bandanna causally answered. “… I was worried for you.”   
And again!   
Samson just-  
“ _What_.”   
“The place is crawling with demons. I thought maybe it would be good for me to keep an eye on you. See what you’re doing and trying to make sure you don’t get hurt.”   
“Are you messing with me?”   
“No.”   
Judas pinched the bride of his nose, somewhat annoyed- though he wasn’t sure if with himself or with Samson. “… aren’t you in danger down here too?”   
“… _perhaps_. Perhaps that’s why I’d rather have someone nearby.”   
Frustrated once more the guy with the fez looked at him.   
It was hard to try and mock someone who openly admitted to his own possible shortcomings.   
Even worse that he KNEW that Samson could hold his own VERY well, yet he wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of TRYING to sow doubt.   
Scoffing he stepped once again.   
“Great then, glad to see the hero arrived to ensure all us sub-humans don’t get endangered.”  
“Who exactly are you talking about?”  
“MYSELF, YOU KNOW!? BECAUSE APPARENTLY, I DO HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF YOU NOW. Unlike you I actually know my way around here.”   
In the first second he only saw Samson’s smile, in the second he finally realized that he had inadvertently offered his company for the duration of this place.   
Flustered he grinded his teeth, but knew it was too late.  
“Thank you Judas, I’m glad you’re willing to help me.”   
There was always this- sarcasm. At least Judas felt like it was sarcasm, weighing down all sentences that Samson said. It felt like it changed something about normal sentences, turning them into deeper statements that he couldn’t even really understand on any other level but intuitive.   
_Rumors sometimes circulated about what Samson had been through, about the scars that decorated his entire body.  
_ Slowly Judas inspected him, allowing his glare to openly linger as a provocation-  
Until he saw that Samson was raising his eyebrow, seemingly not bothered, but questioning his companions intend, which somehow brought Judas right back to being flustered for staring at his body.  
Dammit- he had tried to be the one making Samson feel embarrassed!   
Why could he turn it around so easily?!  
“Let’s- let’s just go.”   
They began making their way through the rooms, Judas taking on a majority of the fights- for some reason.  
Perhaps because he wanted to prove to himself he was just as good of a fighter as Samson. Or perhaps because he wanted to show Samson that next time he couldn’t use the excuse of wanting to ensure he was safe.   
Or perhaps-  
He- just didn’t know.  
 _He didn’t want Samson to get hurt._   
When Samson got hurt, he always got this kind of crazed look in his face, not bloodlust, not hunger for revenge, not even rage- it was the empty, glassy look of absolute despair. And somehow it seemed to drop his inhibitions little by little until he fought recklessly and brutally, while- not being fully there.   
It wasn’t a sight Judas liked to see at all.  
  
Distracted by those thoughts, he didn’t pay attention and-  
  
“JUDAS, WATCH O-“   
A pair of teeth before him-  
 _And teeth buried into his raised arm._  
It was painful and he gave out a barely muffled scream, before using his tears to finish the creature off.  
“God DAMMIT!”   
Samson was rushing over while Judas was still cursing to himself, assessing the damage.  
“It- got you pretty good. That looks painful.” His companion was reaching out, but stopping short from actual touch. “… do you want me to look over it? I know a thing or two about wounds.”   
“No, no, it’s fine.” The other one hissed. “I don’t mind the pain, but stuff like this tires me out. I can’t afford losing blood like this, I have a few things I want to still get to today!”   
“… you don’t have to play strong in front of me.”   
“I’m not!” Again he growled, a bit harsher. _“Just because YOU’RE a crybaby who can’t even have a scratch, doesn’t mean I can’t!”  
_ His eyes met Samson’s, eyes deep and filled with memories.   
For a moment Judas wanted to take it back.  
Wanted to explain to Samson that he himself didn’t even really know what pain was like, that in his entire life he hadn’t seen or heard anything near the things Samson did-  
But then the moment was over.  
For a second it looks like Samson was retracting his hand-  
However, that was not the case, instead he reached out even harsher, holding his arm and pulling it near, taking off his bandana.  
“Maybe you can take pain, but that doesn’t mean you should. _I hate pain. It doesn’t need to be my own for that.”  
_ Judas was quiet, watching him wrap his precious bandana around the injured arm, his bandana that-  
“Don’t you need that one for your- killing power?”   
_“… clearly I found a better use for it_.”   
There weren’t many people who could make Judas shut up for a moment-   
… Samson.  
As he finished up, he looked into Judas face.  
Due to his nature, Judas emotions tended to be open on display, or at least something that looked like his emotions, with his twisted nature underneath. Everything was oversold and overacted, all his actions seemed like caricatures, mockeries of the emotions he felt-  
To most people.  
Not to Samson however.  
Samson had not made his decision on the way Judas talked, he didn’t make his decision based on what Judas said.   
He had watched him, for a long, long while and slowly deciphered those signals that left most others confused and upset.   
It was a pattern he couldn’t really explain to anyone, but if he were to be asked why he kept joining Judas, he would simply say that he felt like there was something more to him and he wanted to try and draw it out.  
Below the greed and the heartlessness.   
It were all just coverups.  
It was ALL just a coverup.  
Even the book he carried, covering up how fragile and easily damaged he really was.  
With a satisfied sigh Samson stopped his work and stepped back.  
“This should make sure it will be undisturbed until it’s healed.”   
Judas was still sitting in the position he had been before, his face turned away, his arm drawn back and kept close to himself, as though trying to protect it from something.   
“Are you okay?” Slightly Samson frowned, concerned. Perhaps he had overstepped? “… Judas, did I-“   
“ _Let’s continue already. You’re wasting time.”_  
“… a thank you would have sufficed.”   
“Shut up.”   
Slightly Samson smiled.   
That was his way of saying thank you, wasn’t it?  
  
They made their way further and further in.  
The rooms were tough, but nothing that was impossible to handle.  
After all, when things got too difficult, Judas could always use his book and Samson was surprisingly effective, even without his bandana, when his enemies didn’t expect him.  
So their descend was swift.   
Room after room crumbled before them and there didn’t seem to be an end to it, until-  
“Oh no.”   
The doors behind the shut, the room was giant.  
Perhaps that was why at first they weren’t so sure what they were looking for, what they were looking out for, when suddenly-  
  
 _The sound of a sizzling breath._  
  
Instinctively both of them jumped to the side, one left, one right, as a burning hot brimstone laser ripped the air open between them.  
The source was the Adversary, floating with a grim smile as it watched his two future snacks scrambling-  
Just in time for a second brimstone to make them duck away again.  
 _There wasn’t just ONE Adversary in here-  
There were TWO._  
This would be-  
Difficult to say the least.  
They might not even make it out, if they synched up his attacks-  
Samson got ready, trying to wreck his brain for a way to distract one or perhaps use one against the other-  
Then he heard another kind of sizzling.  
A bomb!  
Shocked he looked to the door, where Judas had put down a bomb.  
Quickly he tried to join him, just to be cut off by the lasers.  
He couldn’t believe it- Judas was using him as distraction to be able to open the door!  
“Judas- what- are you doing?!”   
“I’m not dealing with this!”   
“But I-“   
“Shut up and focus on dodging!”   
One more attack, and one of the demons was flying up, aiming for him-  
Judas wouldn’t abandon him-  
Right?  
  
 ** _Armies_** _being taken down by his hands.  
Everyone else fleeing, fleeing from HIM, friends and foes alike, because he had been such a monster-  
Everything alone, everything alone-_  
  
Judas had slipped out, leaving Samson alone to fight them both.  
Without his bandana.  
Without a way out.   
Not even a distraction.  
Tightening his fists, Samson decided that trying to doge and blindly attack outward would be his best bet.   
Even if he couldn’t hit them, as long as they couldn’t hit him in return, he would be able to make it out with enough time.  
The doors would snap open.  
Laser.  
Rocks.  
Laser.  
Blood droplets.  
And the Sheol became every so often darker, right before they began their rush, making them hard to spot and avoid-  
His breath was burning.  
It couldn’t have been more than two minutes, this wasn’t working-  
He’d break down if they’d keep him running like this-  
  
Then another explosion sounded.  
The door was shattered open, causing both demons to divert their attention-  
  
In the door stood Judas, raising his book.  
  
“You seriously think I would fight you without my book? Hah. You’re cute. I BET YOU GUYS THINK IT’S FUNNY TO KICK SOMEONE WHO CAN’T KICK BACK, BUT THAT’S ABOUT TO CHANGE.”   
“Judas!”   
“SHUT UP, I’M THE THING TO FOCUS ON RIGHT NOW.”   
Samson’s legs brought him quickly to a somewhat safe place behind the rocks, as Judas began tearing into them.  
Well- tearing is a lot to say, but he WAS visibly doing damage and that was a step up.  
However, the two demons were tough.  
Lasers, rocks, blood drops and suddenly someone rushing over towards one?  
Judas couldn’t do this alone.  
Right as Samson was deciding it would be best to interrupt the fight and help, regardless of how badly Judas seemed to want to do this on his own, a sudden, heavily curved laser moved towards Judas, hitting him firmly before he could fully jump out of the way.  
That was the last straw.  
“Judas, let me-“   
But his sinful companion didn’t even pay attention as he stood back up.  
 _The bandana glowed with a powerful aura._  
The human turned to the demon who had just hit him, who was seemingly realizing that he MIGHT have done something very wrong.  
Blood and tears mixed together in Judas’ expression-  
But he grinned.  
“… okay, so you wanted dibs on death.”   
And that was the last thing the demon heard before being burned out of existence by a flurry of quick, deadly acidic tears.  
The other one wanted to maybe avenge his friend- or escape- but he was caught up next.   
  
_The room was empty.  
The door opened._  
  
Out of breath, but still fired up, Judas turned to look at Samson, who was inspecting him.  
… his bandana suited Judas- but he shouldn’t keep it.   
Judas was easily swayed from the wrong path.  
However now-  
Something changed in Judas’ expression and suddenly he seemed flustered.  
“J-just to clarify, I WAS going to abandon you. I never had any intentions to go back. It just so HAPPEN that I found a battery and though that it would be pretty satisfying to kill these two.”   
Slightly Samson smiled, knowing this was an outrageous lie.  
“… sure. Thank you.”   
“… yeah.”   
As Judas turned, abruptly a weird feeling flooded through Samson and he reached out, taking his hand, holding it tight. It seemed to somewhat startle the other boy, yet he didn’t pull back.  
“What’s this about?! You scared?!”   
For a moment Samson considered-   
Then he shrugged.  
“… you said you would abandon me when it comes down to it, so I should be allowed to make sure it won’t happen anytime soon, right?”   
In disbelief Judas stared at him, before his face became a bit softer as he turned away.  
His hand squeezed Samson’s for a moment.  
“… fine. Just don’t slow me down.”   
“You know I wouldn’t.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t feel like I really nailed Samson, because I don’t know many characters that are like you described, but I tried my best and it was fun! Thank you again for the request! AND I’M SORRY AGAIN THAT I WAS GONE FOR SO LONG.  
> Can’t promise to be more regular in the future, but it felt good to come back and I have a good bit of requests to get to! You’re free to request more, just saying, things are noted and slowly being planned for aside from my own work :3  
> Until next time!

**Author's Note:**

> Please, never hesitate to request, give feedback or just stop by to talk! I respond to every comment! I take all constructive criticism! And have a lovely day!


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